Help Provide a Book for a Child in Need #BeBookSmart

Disclosure: I received product and gift cards in exchange for sharing.

Did you know that thousands of children don’t have access to books? Something as simple as a book that so many of us, myself included, take for granted, so many kids don’t get the chance to experience. Books have always been my escape and ever since I can remember I have loved books. Now while I do still make time for books for myself, I am also constantly picking up books to inspire a love of reading in my own kids. I am so grateful that we have access to libraries and bookstores.

To help provide books for children in need, Macy’s has launched the Macy’s Be Book Smart campaign. Customers can donate $3 at any Macy’s register in-store and 100$ of those proceeds will go directly to Reading is Fundamental (RIF) to provide books and learning resources to children who need them most. Customers are not only giving the opportunity for children to build their literacy skills, but also the opportunity to experience the magic and power of books!

As a thank you, Macy’s customers get $10 off a purchase of $30 or more, PLUS 20% to 15% storewide for their $3 donations.

RIF has also just released the 2015 Multicultural Book Collection, which is funded in part by Macy’s. This is an amazing compilation of high-quality and engaging books for elementary-aged children. Each book incorporates at least one science, technology, engineering, the arts or mathematics (STEAM) theme while also emphasizing multiculturalism and diversity in content and character development.

Reading during the summer is so important to keep kids on track, and for kids who lack the resources such as books, the lack of reading and quality books can hurt literary skills up through high school. There is research that shows that 75% of students who read poorly in 3rd grade, a benchmark year for literary skill building, remain poor readers in high school. The key to helping children maintain or improve their literacy skills over the summer is providing access to lots of quality books that they can choose based on personal interests. When kids have lots of books readily available to them, they are more motivated, empowered and inspired to read. That is why Macy’s is committed to providing as many books as possible to children who need them most.

Here are some tips for fun activities you can play at home to engage your kids:

As a parent, you can help increase your child’s reading ability. Whether it’s playing games, singing songs or taking a trip to the local library – use this time to create new experiences together!

Have a “book-nic.” Grab a blanket, snacks and books to celebrate a beautiful summer day.

Use sidewalk chalk to make a mural with your family. Don’t forget to title your masterpiece.

Play easy work or rhyming games with your child.

Visit the library and check out books for the entire week – pick one about birds or insects and go on an adventure walk to see if any live in your neighborhood.

Reading is contagious – let your kids see you reading books, magazines and even cereal boxes!

Play the alphabet game by finding letters starting from A to Z while in the car or on a walk.

Looking for summer reading resources to help your own children avoid the summer reading slide? The Reading is Fundamental website has you covered!

I encourage my daughter to search for her interests – what would she enjoy reading about ? And I am sure to encourage her and explain that everyone reads at different levels/speeds and it is just important that she enjoys it.

I was always reading to my daughter when she was little and we give advent calendar of books for Christmas that she looks forward to every year! She loves going to the library to pick out her own books too!

My grandson is too young to be reading but we read to him daily because he loves it. With my son, I also read to him daily and, along with pre-school teachings, he was reading quite well in kindergarten. 🙂

i always read several books to my youngest every night at bedtime… and she loved it so much, i think that it had a lot to do with her love of reading now. i try to encourage her and we go shopping at Barnes & Noble when we can afford to 🙂

I try to read to my kids every night. Now that my oldest is learning to read. I pick books that I know she can get through fairly easily and let her read to us. We go to the library a lot. I love to read myself, so it’s always been important to me that my kids enjoy reading as well.

I don’t have anymore little ones at home, but I do read to them while they are here. We also buy books for them as gifts. Reading can take your imagination anywhere & be anything!! I read all the time. It relaxes me & at times, keeps me from being lonely!! I know my daughters have enrolled some of their kids in reading programs at their local libraries.

Our daughter is 19 months, so we have made it a nightly ritual to read to her as a family. We also read ourselves, as I find she altered wants to mimic us. We keep her books out and at a level she can see them and get them herself so she can “read” any time.

I always try to encourage my son to try new things. At the library he’ll get books that he knows he is interested in and gets 1 book that maybe different than what he usually gets. He started getting into a lot of new things that he thought he wouldn’t be into because of this.

I take my grandkids to the library and let them check out books. Both my 6 yr old grandson and my 11 yr old granddaughter have their own library cards. As part of their birthday and Christmas gifts I always include a gift cards to Barnes & Noble, so they love to go to the bookstore & purchase their own books.

The main tips I have given to my daughter and they have helped her a lot would be, to sound out the words that she doesn’t know and to look at the letters to see if they sound like a word she may already know that would help her to pronounce the word. I also told her to never give up on Reading because you have to be able to read to do anything in life, there is always something that you will need to or have to read.

I’m always reading so it’s no surprise that both of my kiddos want to read as well. We have always read a book before bed since they were babies. With my 6 year old daughter I have made her a chart and when she reads me 10 books she gets to pick a thing out of the “treasure box”. She usually reads 1 to 2 a day. I told her I would take her out for a special treat and to buy a new book once she reads 50 (this is our summer goal).

We started reading to our kids when they were still in my womb. When they were born, we read to them on day one (home from the hospital). Even when they were too young to read, we always pretend that they were reading to us so that they would learn to enjoy the process/step to reading.

One way I encourage the kids to read is to find out what interests them and then find books that will keep their attention. Their interests change all the time, so they are not just reading one subject.

A few ideas on helping. Your children read would have to be, read often, at least 1 to 2.books per day. Let them read to you, even if they don’t know how. Ask them questions between pages about the story, colors, letters, or numbers depending on the age

I think the bedtime stories start the love for reading. I read to my boys every night. Our schools enforced reading, but sometimes forcing it too much causes them to pull away from wanting to read. Do not force it.

Both my children love books. When my son asks me to read a book to him, I automatically do it. When I take my daughter to the book store, I do not discriminate on what children’s book she wants. As a result, she loves to read and is one of the best readers in her class.

I dont have kids. But, for myself I pick books I want to read. IN the past I picked books I thought I should read but, had no interest in reading them. I also got them because they were cheap and I like a good deal.

I do not have children, but I read to my niece and nephews over the phone. They live in Nebraska and I live in Florida. I will buy us both a copy of the same book and then I will read it to them while they read along.

When pleasure reading, don’t get stuck on one word. Just skip it and keep going. Sometimes the word and its meaning become obvious. Other times, they don’t. Stopping to look up every new word, while educational, can become a chore and take away from the joy of reading. It’s okay to skip new words if that will help your child’s enjoyment of reading.

Just as I spent time each day talking to and with my daughter, I also spent some time each day reading to her from the time she was a baby. This spurs interest in books and as children become toddlers and preschoolers who want to imitate their parents doing all kinds of things, reading will become one of them.

I allow my kids to pick out their own books, keep them more interested. We point to the pictures and really focus on the pictures after reading each page. Sometimes we even point to words as we are reading.

I love to read so I’ve read with my kids from very young, they see me reading, we’ve gone to the library since they were a year old so reading has always jsut been a part of our daily routine and I’m lucky that my kids all love to read so far.